Conservation policy document

Following is a recently revised conservation policy for the National
Gallery of Victoria.

    **** Moderator's comments: The document is available in
    Conservation OnLine at
    http://palimpsest.stanford.edu/byorg/victoria/vicpol.html
    I hope other will follow this lead and contribute their policy
    documents to CoOL. Just send (as machine-readable text) to
    waiscool [at] palimpsest__stanford__edu

The NGV was established in Melbourne Australia a decade after the
National Gallery in London and contains a large collection of
important artworks from a wide range of cultures, but especially
European paintings and works on paper and one of the most important
collections of Australian Art.

The first NGV Conservation Policy was written by the staff of about
4 conservators in 1984.  Since then the section staff has grown
considerably and the role of the department has matured and evolved,
encompassing a much more integrated approach stressing collection
management over repair.

This revision sought to condense the previous much more lengthy
document to focus on principles and roles.  It is the result of
extensive and lively discussion over many weeks by myself, the heads
of conservation sections, the Senior Research Curator of
International Art and the Deputy Director of International Art and
Collection Management.

I offer this document for fellow conservators' consideration and as
a reference point. It reflects how conservators in this institution
see themselves and their role in the preservation of our
collections.  As it is brief, I don't feel too guilty about taking
up space for what for most people will be of limited interest, and
do hope a few colleagues will find it useful for their next
consideration of their own policy. ...

Thomas Dixon, Chief Conservator
Conservation Department
National Gallery of Victoria
180 St Kilda Rd
Melbourne  Vic  3004
Australia
+61 3 9208.0348
Fax: 61 3 9208.0249

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                  Conservation DistList Instance 10:48
                 Distributed: Monday, November 18, 1996
                       Message Id: cdl-10-48-001
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